Club level or not

[kemmerlinj2]

So I've finally decided on the Animal Kingdom Lodge. My question is it better to do the club level or do the deluxe dining plan? Is the breakfast at the club level good enough not to do the deluxe and just do the plus or will breakfast at the parks be better? Any thoughts would be appreciated!

 

[karenklo]

We did AKL club level last June. I have to say it was very nice to just walk up, have breakfast, and then hit the parks and not worry about finding something to eat before the parks got busy. We loved the pastries, oatmeal, and fresh fruit. My husband however preferred the beer after a long day at the park! We are going back to the Poly next month doing Cl again! Just love the convenience! Have a great trip!!

 

[MomofDisneyLoversx3]

I would analyze how your family eats. We have 5, and breakfast is fruit, cereal or oatmeal. Maybe toast or yogurt. Plus about a pot of coffee for me . For us CL makes much more sense than DxDP. If I had to do a sit down breakfast everyday I would cry. If you are and eggs, bacon, French toast every morning family, then DxDP might be better.

Btw we LOVE AKL CL. Sooooo much. Makes me sad that my DS will be a 'real person' next year and we will have to find a new home base.

Heather.

 

[mickeynut1]

So I've finally decided on the Animal Kingdom Lodge. My question is it better to do the club level or do the deluxe dining plan? Is the breakfast at the club level good enough not to do the deluxe and just do the plus or will breakfast at the parks be better? Any thoughts would be appreciated!

I think the breakfast offerings are great for a quick breakfast/coffee first thing in the morning. Not every CL is the same as far as offerings, but breakfast items are generally muffins, bagels, fruit, yogurt, cold cereral, etc. that are great for a quick breakfast. Some also have oatmeal and hard boiled eggs and I'm not sure if AKL CL has these or not. We haven't stayed CL at AKL, but I have read a lot of great reviews. AKL is a beautiful resort and I think you made a great choice. As far as which DDP to get, I think that's a matter of preference depending on how you eat and if you will do a sit down meal every night. Some people prefer to pay OOP when staying CL; while others like the DDP; while others enjoy the DlxDDP and do a lot of signature restaurants. I would try to decide where you want to eat and see which dining plan fits that way of eating. Good luck deciding and I hope you have a magical trip .

 

[Dreamsdocometrue9112]

We have done CL at the Grand and DxDP...we much preferred CL. The convenience was just perfect. Plus also take into consideration how much time you spend at the resort. If not much, the DxDP makes more sense. We loved the continental style breakfast CL and the midday snacks, as well as the evening appetizers. Especially the wine ;-)

 

[karmacats]

AKL CL has a decent selection for breakfast - there is oatmeal and another hot quinoa oatmeal-type porridge plus toppings (brown sugar, etc), cold cereal, various pastries (including really delicious chocolate croissants and chocolate chip muffins), and a few kinds of juice. There is plenty of everything and they refresh it all during the posted breakfast times.

The trick is hot breakfasts - if you don't need a hot breakfast or oatmeal or quinoa is good enough, I'd definitely say go for CL. The personal service is great and there are food and beverages out until 10 pm, so you get benefits other than just breakfast. If you're a big breakfast family and want eggs, bacon, etc, then the CL breakfast probably won't cut it.

 

[WisconsinDad]

I've never done CL because I've never been able to justify the cost. For my upcoming trip in Aug, I just looked at CL at AKL and it was almost $1400 more (compared to standard view) for the week I will be there (maybe the price difference isn't as much when you are going).

Maybe I shouldn't judge since I haven't done it but I've never felt I would spend that much money OOP on continental breakfast-type food in the morning and appetizers, beer, and wine in the evening. The best advice I could give is to check the prices at Mara for the types of things you would indulge in at CL and compare the prices.

Regarding DxDP, you are really comparing apples to oranges as the DxDP includes much more food that CL. We've done the DDP and we struggled fitting in one TS meal per day; I can't imagine trying to fit in more than that. I suppose if you use some of the credits for signature restaurants it may justify the cost.

 

[ElizabethB]

We really enjoy the convenience of breakfast in the CL lounge. For us, it's much nicer than fighting the crowds at a counter service or table service restaurant. We also like wine or beer and appetizers in the evening. Years ago, on our first stay at GF, we received a complimentary upgrade to main building club level. We really enjoyed it and have stayed club level ever since (I guess Disney knew what they were doing when they upgraded us).

We loved AKL CL when we stayed there. It has been a few years, though, so opinions of those who have stayed more recently will be more useful for you.

I don't think I would pay $1400 more for a week in Club Level. But, I would certainly pay $700 more. I figure the four of us easily would spend that $700 on breakfast and snacks each day -- and it won't be as pleasant as eating in the CL lounge.

Personally, I would not do DeluxeDDP and CL. I wouldn't even do regular DDP and CL. That is not to say that the appetizers make a dinner. They don't. (Unlike at PBH at Universal where one can easily make a dinner of the evening offerings.) But, with CL we don't need anything for breakfast. we prefer two table service meals a day for lunch and dinner (often sharing the entree), we rarely eat a counter service meal, and we don't buy snacks. For snacks we enjoy the CL lounge offerings. So DDP doesn't work for us.

 

[CoolPool]

I've never done CL because I've never been able to justify the cost. For my upcoming trip in Aug, I just looked at CL at AKL and it was almost $1400 more (compared to standard view) for the week I will be there (maybe the price difference isn't as much

I think that the difference in price from a standard view which is often a parking lot/bus depot view to CL is probably prohibitive for many. However the price difference for some one who has already booked savannah view is not so much. In fact there was a deal last summer when CL rooms were virtually the same price as a savannah room. All CL rooms come with prime savannah views. So I think Disney is scouting the people who are already booked at a higher category and hoping to hook them on the little extras. It worked on us; part of our next trip is CL at the CR.